What you need to do is to monitor the PDF being created, and maybe even show a progress bar to provide feedback for the user. If you don't want the user to have to wait, you will need to write a separate program that runs in it's own thread that does the same thing.

   Assuming you want it all within MS Word and using VBA, you can use the "rename" function to check to see if the file has been created, and released. Here is some sample code:

'---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
' Procedure : CheckFileCreated
' Author    : Michel_K17
' Purpose   : To check if a File Exists and is not "busy" (being written to my another process)
'
' History   : v1 (7/10/04)
'           : Make sure I can RENAME file (to itself). If it fails, then file still "busy".
'---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Public Function CheckFileCreated(FileName As String) As Boolean
    On Error GoTo ErrorHandler
    CheckFileCreated = False
    Name FileName As FileName
    CheckFileCreated = True
ErrorHandler:
End Function

   All you need to do afterwards is to create a Loop that waits until the PDF is available. Consider having a counter that allows you to leave the Loop after a few minutes (ie don't create an infinite loop).

   I may have some sample VBA code that does that. I'll see if I can dig it up later today.

Hi Fons,

   This is curious. THe PDF is created in a separate thread, and the loop should not prevent creation. Can you send me a copy of your VBA code by e-mail? I can take a look and try to fix it for you.

   Cheers!

Hi Michel,

I just started to experience the same problem. Once or twice in 10 attempts (I tried both excel and word) my code hangs on the loop below. I see a window telling me that my system is creating .... .pdf file, but that's it. Looks like the loop is going and going without noticing that the file has been already created.

        Dim MaxTime2Unlock As Single
        MaxTime2Unlock = Timer() + 60

        ' Start the loop
        Do While MaxTime2Unlock >= Timer And Not CheckFileCreated(sPath & "\" & sFilename)
            ' Share the CPU with other programs
            Sleep (100)
            DoEvents
        Loop

What's weird is that sometimes it hangs and other times it doesn't. I made sure I wasn't running any system demanding processes at the time of trial.

 

Thanks

Marek

 

 

Hi there,

   That is weird indeed. I will do some testing and get back to you. Which version of Windows and Office are you using?

Michel

Thanks. One of my machines is Office 2003 with Win XP Pro SP2. So far, I have not been able to duplicate the problem, but I will be trying more complex files to see if that makes a difference.

Michel,

I think I got it figured out. It looks like if you don't (and I didn't) use background:=false parameter for your .printout function that's what causing the code to hang. I've added it in and since then haven't had one problem.

Regards

Marek

Greetings Michel,

I just had the same thing happen to me (from Access not Excel). The report spools as the code runs but it doesn't seem to be turned into a pdf until the code has stopped running.

Any ideas on this one???

C!!!

Did you try something as simple as this to pause until the pdf is actually there?

Dim MyFile As String
'PAUSE UNTIL THE PDF HAS BEEN CREATED
MyFile = ""
Do Until MyFile <> ""
    MyFile = Dir$("C:\test\test.pdf")
    DoEvents
Loop